Different fans are known for drying floors, carpets and other floor covering. Among these fans is the well-known electrically driven, squirrel-cage blower of the type disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,265,895, Floor Fan Handtruck Apparatus And Method, issued to Barrett on Nov. 30, 1993, the complete disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. This type of squirrel-cage blower fan is illustrated in FIG. 1A, generally indicated at 1, having a generally rectangular outlet or “discharge chute” 3 located adjacent the bottom of a blower housing 5 and extending outwardly tangentially from the blower housing and parallel to the floor. The discharge chute 3 allows the operator to direct the blast of air generated by the fan horizontally across the designated area of the floor, as indicated by the arrows. Adjustable risers 7 at the outer end of the discharge chute 3 allow the operator to adjust the angle of the air blast from the discharge chute 3 relative to the floor surface.
FIG. 1B illustrates another type of floor and carpet drying fan disclosed by Larry White in U.S. Design Pat. No. D480,467, Air Mover, issued on Oct. 7, 2003, and assigned to Dri-Eaz Products, Incorporated of Burlington, Wash., the complete disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference, which generally teaches an ornamental design for a fan 11 having a generally barrel-shaped molded shroud 13 having smoothly rounded lips 15 at the inlet 17 and outlet orifice 19, each with a protective round wire grille 21. Legs 23 are provided on four sides of the shroud 13 for holding it an undisclosed distance above the floor surface. The blast of air generated by the fan 11 is directed generally parallel with the longitudinal axis of the barrel-shape of the shroud 13, as indicated by the arrow. According to product literature, the fan 11 can be rotated into seven specific different relationships with the floor by rotating the shroud 13 on the legs 23. Each of the legs 23 are provided with coasters 25 on its blunt end and exposed side surfaces, as shown, which are believed to hold the fan 11 in position without imprinting or otherwise damaging the carpet. The molded shroud 13 and legs 23 are also configured for linear stacking of multiple fans 11. A handle 27 is provided on one outside surface of the molded shroud 13 for lifting, carrying and moving the fan 11.
While prior art fan devices such as those described briefly here are useful for drying floors with or without carpeting, such prior art fan devices suffer limitations that limit both their speed and effectiveness in accomplishing the desired goal of drying the work surface, and their ease of operation.